Media’s misconception of the national has them relegate regional leaders to inside pages, even if they engage in substantive oratory
While Modi laying the foundation for Noida airport made it to page one, voices of Akhilesh Yadav, who wanted the airport at Firozabad but was denied nod, or Mayawati, whose plan for the airport was not cleared, were sent to inside pages. File pic/AFP
Newspapers published from Delhi ostensibly believe their identity as national publications must have them place even trite election speeches of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the front page. Their misconception of the national also has them relegate regional leaders to inside pages, even when they engage in substantive oratory. This lopsided coverage is detrimental to democracy, as it tailors the electoral wicket to the Bharatiya Janata Party’s advantage.
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To check my intuition, I analysed the coverage in three national newspapers of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election campaign. They are identified as One Newspaper, Another Newspaper and Third Newspaper. The starting date: October 25, when Modi launched the PM Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission in Uttar Pradesh.
On October 26, One Newspaper featured a full-page advertisement, which said Modi has “ensured a transformation in healthcare in the past seven years”, and that Rs 64,000 crore would be spent on healthcare infrastructure. Presumably embarrassed at regurgitating the same details on page one, One Newspaper banished the story on the event to an inside page, as was also done by Third Newspaper, which too had the same advertisement. Another Newspaper, however, headlined its report on page one: “Past govts went slow on health infra: Modi”.
Announced in 2018, the Ayushman Bharat had then been brilliantly spotlighted. Does the launch of its different stages deserve page one treatment? None of the three newspapers saw the event in the context of the simmering anger against the COVID-19 mismanagement.
On November 16, Modi’s plane landed on the Lucknow-Ghazipur Purvanchal Expressway, which he then inaugurated. The Indian Air Force organised a spectacular air show. On the same day, One Newspaper had a full-page ad: “Naye Uttar Pradesh Ka Naya Expressway (New Uttar Pradesh has New Expressway).” Expectedly, next morning, One Newspaper headlined its front-page story: “At the inauguration of India’s longest e-way, PM launches into SP [Samajwadi Party].”
One Newspaper’s story quoted Modi saying leaders of the earlier government (of Akhilesh Yadav) did not want to be seen by his side, when he would visit Uttar Pradesh, “for fear of losing their vote bank [Muslims]”, but they ended up handing over the state to “mafia” and “poverty”. Modi’s tactic of polarising the electorate was not even decoded, let alone analysed.
Another Newspaper’s page one screamed: “Modi opens eastern UP gateway [Purvanchal Expressway].” Its story said that political dynasties partnered to crush the “aspirations of the people of Uttar Pradesh over the years…” Yawn! That was a seven-year-old record playing.
Third Newspaper had on page one a photo of Modi stepping down from the plane, with his spin on dynasties in an inside page. The paper had a separate story on the air show. Uttar Pradesh had landed a plane on a highway in 2015. There’s nothing to go gaga about now.
In fact, the foundation stone for the Purvanchal Expressway had been laid earlier by Akhilesh Yadav, and land acquisition for the highway had vigorously begun. But his successor, Yogi Adityanath, realigned the highway in order to claim it as his idea. True, “old wine in new bottles” does require a fresh launch, which should not, though, masquerade as page one news.
On November 19, after repealing the three farm laws, Modi inaugurated irrigation projects in Uttar Pradesh. This ‘news’ was muscled out from page one by the repeal. But One Newspaper thought Modi’s trip was worthy of the inside flap—that irritating strip attached to page one—where Modi was quoted saying, “…we do the politics of solution.” His remark should get him the Irony of the Year award.
On November 25, Modi laid the foundation for the Noida International Airport at Jewar, a project first conceived in 2001 by Uttar Pradesh’s then chief minister Rajnath Singh. Yadav said he had wanted the Noida airport to be at Firozabad, but Modi refused permission. Mayawati claimed the Manmohan Singh government did not clear a blueprint for the same airport her government had prepared.
These two voices did not make it to page one, which is reserved for those with high status. One Newspaper, addicted to government ads, celebrated the occasion with this page one headline: “At Jewar, Modi & Yogi toast infra, roast Opposition.” Another Newspaper was sober: “Noida airport to be new logistics gateway: Modi.” It quoted him saying, “The thinking of these people [Opposition] is self-interest… whereas we follow the spirit of the nation first.” Is Modi’s inauguration spree devoid of self-interest?
Third Newspaper declared on its front page: “Jewar airport: PM says will change west UP, Yogi flays ‘Jinnah Backers’.” The term ‘Jinnah backers’ was a reference to Yadav counting Jinnah among freedom fighters. Third Newspaper must feature on its explainer page whether Jinnah can be described as a freedom fighter.
Over the next two months, Modi will speak of development, vote bank (Muslims), dynasties and mafia rule—his signature themes since 2013. Yadav will demand caste census and jobs to be distributed in proportion to the population of each category of social groups. My prediction: Modi will hog page one and Yadav, if featured, will be banished to the inside pages. Such are media’s biases—and its greed for government advertisements.
The writer is a senior journalist
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